Murdered journalists George and Macel Vigo are buried Saturday, 01 July 2006 in Kidapawan City in North Cotabato province in the southern Philippines. (Mark Navales)
KIDAPAWAN, North Cotabato (Mark Navales / 01 Jul) Hundreds of mourners, many friends and relatives of slain journalists George and Macel Vigo, attended the couple's burial Saturday in Kidapawan City in North Cotabato province in southern Philippines.
Journalists mourning the death of the duo carried banners, one saying: "HUSTISYA ALANG SA TANANG BIKTIMA PAGPAMATAY SA PASISTANG ESTADO,” (Justice for all murdered victims of this fascist government). Macel, 36, was also known as Mazel, a broadcast journalist, while her 36-year old husband was a writer for the Union of Catholic Asian News (UCAN).
The two were on a motorcycle on their way home when one of two gunmen shot them on June 19 in Sandawa district in Kidapawan City.
Police have tagged Dionisio Madanggit, an alleged hitman of the communist rebel group New People's Army (NPA), as the couple's killer. A P100,000 bounty has been offered for the arrest of Madanggit, according to Chief Supt. German Doria, the regional police chief.
But the NPA strongly denied police charges that one of its fighter was behind the killing and blamed the military for the attack.
"The cold-blooded murder of George and Mazel Vigo in Kidapawan City is without any doubt the handiwork of Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) death squads. This exactly confirms that the two-year-P1 billion all-out-war ordered by the fascist illegal occupant in Malacañang has civilians as targets," said Ricardo Fermiza, spokesman of the NPA's Magtanggol Roque Command in Southern Mindanao.
Police said two men were involved in the attack, but it did not identify the second suspect. Both escaped on a motorcycle after the attack, whose motive is still unknown. Other reports said Mandanggit is also contract killer.
The NPA also denied that Madanggit is a member of the rebel group.
"There is no Dionisio Madanguit listed in the roster of membership in the NPA. The enemy is adept at such deceptive machinations that intend to manipulate public opinion. As expected, the AFP-Philippine National Police are quick to point at us, hinting that the couple was supposedly their intelligence “assets” providing information against the New Peoples Army (NPA). They even dropped the name of a certain Dionisio Madanguit who is allegedly a member of the NPA “sparrow unit” who executed the couple."
"Nothing can be farther from the truth than such barefaced lie and deception. The Vigo couple was known for their involvement in the progressive legal democratic mass movement in North Cotabato. They have contributed to the struggle for human rights, environment protection, agrarian reform, and the rights and welfare of media, women and children, and national minority," Fermiza said.
The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines said George Vigo also was the executive director of the non-governmental organization Peoples' Kauyahan Foundation, Inc. (PKFI), which was behind many peace forums and dialogues in North Cotabato and Maguindanao provinces.
The couple, who had 5 children, also founded the Federation of Reporters for Empowerment and Equality in the province.
Last month, gunmen also killed Fernando Batul, a broadcaster based in Palawan province in the central Philippines. He was the 5th journalist killed this year, the 42nd to die under the Arroyo administration.
Journalists mourning the death of the duo carried banners, one saying: "HUSTISYA ALANG SA TANANG BIKTIMA PAGPAMATAY SA PASISTANG ESTADO,” (Justice for all murdered victims of this fascist government). Macel, 36, was also known as Mazel, a broadcast journalist, while her 36-year old husband was a writer for the Union of Catholic Asian News (UCAN).
The two were on a motorcycle on their way home when one of two gunmen shot them on June 19 in Sandawa district in Kidapawan City.
Police have tagged Dionisio Madanggit, an alleged hitman of the communist rebel group New People's Army (NPA), as the couple's killer. A P100,000 bounty has been offered for the arrest of Madanggit, according to Chief Supt. German Doria, the regional police chief.
But the NPA strongly denied police charges that one of its fighter was behind the killing and blamed the military for the attack.
"The cold-blooded murder of George and Mazel Vigo in Kidapawan City is without any doubt the handiwork of Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) death squads. This exactly confirms that the two-year-P1 billion all-out-war ordered by the fascist illegal occupant in Malacañang has civilians as targets," said Ricardo Fermiza, spokesman of the NPA's Magtanggol Roque Command in Southern Mindanao.
Police said two men were involved in the attack, but it did not identify the second suspect. Both escaped on a motorcycle after the attack, whose motive is still unknown. Other reports said Mandanggit is also contract killer.
The NPA also denied that Madanggit is a member of the rebel group.
"There is no Dionisio Madanguit listed in the roster of membership in the NPA. The enemy is adept at such deceptive machinations that intend to manipulate public opinion. As expected, the AFP-Philippine National Police are quick to point at us, hinting that the couple was supposedly their intelligence “assets” providing information against the New Peoples Army (NPA). They even dropped the name of a certain Dionisio Madanguit who is allegedly a member of the NPA “sparrow unit” who executed the couple."
"Nothing can be farther from the truth than such barefaced lie and deception. The Vigo couple was known for their involvement in the progressive legal democratic mass movement in North Cotabato. They have contributed to the struggle for human rights, environment protection, agrarian reform, and the rights and welfare of media, women and children, and national minority," Fermiza said.
The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines said George Vigo also was the executive director of the non-governmental organization Peoples' Kauyahan Foundation, Inc. (PKFI), which was behind many peace forums and dialogues in North Cotabato and Maguindanao provinces.
The couple, who had 5 children, also founded the Federation of Reporters for Empowerment and Equality in the province.
Last month, gunmen also killed Fernando Batul, a broadcaster based in Palawan province in the central Philippines. He was the 5th journalist killed this year, the 42nd to die under the Arroyo administration.
Batul was the 79th journalist murdered since 1986 when press freedom was supposed to have been restored. (With a report from Juan Magtanggol)
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